NOTTING HILL by Richard Curtis - The Script Source

1 NOTTING hill . by Richard Curtis Converted to PDF by ScreenTalk Online EXT. STREET - DAY. Mix through to William, 35, relaxed, pleasant, informal. We follow him as he walks down Portobello Road, carrying a load of bread. It is spring. WILLIAM ( ). Of course, I've seen her films and always thought she was, well, fabulous -- but, you know, million miles from the world I live in. Which is here -- NOTTING hill -- not a bad place to EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY. It's a full fruit market day. WILLIAM ( ). There's the market on weekdays, selling every fruit and vegetable known to EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY. A man in denims exits the tattoo studio. WILLIAM ( ). The tattoo parlor -- with a guy outside who got drunk and now can't remember why he chose 'I Love Ken'.. EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY. WILLIAM ( ). The racial hair-dressers where everyone comes out looking like the Cookie Monster, whether they like it or Sure enough, a girl exits with a huge threaded blue bouffant.

2 EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - SATURDAY. WILLIAM ( ). Then suddenly it's the weekend, and from break of day, hundreds of stalls appears out of nowhere, filling Portobello Road right up to NOTTING hill A frantic crowded Portobello market. WILLIAM ( ).. and thousands of people buy millions of antiques, some 2. The camera finally settles on a stall selling beautiful stained glass windows of various sizes, some featuring biblical scenes and saints. WILLIAM ( ).. and some not so genuine. EXT. GOLBORNE ROAD - DAY. WILLIAM ( ). And what's great is that lots of friends have ended up in this part of London -- that's Tony, architect turned chef, who recently invested all the money he ever earned in a new Shot of Tony proudly setting out a board outside his restaurant, the sign still being painted. He receives and approves a huge fresh salmon. EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY. WILLIAM ( ). So this is where I spend my days and years -- in this small village in the middle of a city -- in a house with a blue door that my wife and I.

3 Bought before she left me for a man who looked like Harrison Ford, only even We arrive outside his blue-doored house just off Portobello. WILLIAM ( ).. and where I now lead a strange half-life with a lodger INT. WILLIAM'S HOUSE - DAY. WILLIAM. Spike! The house has far too many things in it. Definitely two- bachelor flat. Spike appears. An unusual looking fellow. He has unusual hairs, unusual facial hair and an unusual Welsh accent: very white, as though his flesh has never seen the sun. He wears only shorts. SPIKE. Even he. Hey, you couldn't help me with an incredibly important decision, could you? 3. WILLIAM. This is important in comparison to, let's say, whether they should cancel third world debt? SPIKE. That's right -- I'm at last going out on a date with great Janine and I just want to be sure I've picked the right t-shirt. WILLIAM. What are the choices? SPIKE. wait for (He pulls on a t- shirt). First there's this The t-shirt is white with a horrible looking plastic alien coming out of it, jaws open, blood everywhere.

4 It says 'I. Love Blood.'. WILLIAM. Yes -- might make it hard to strike a really romantic note. SPIKE. Point taken. He heads back up the talks as he SPIKE. I suspect you'll prefer the next one. And he re-enters in a white t-shirt, with a large arrow, pointing down to his flies, saying, "Get It Here.'. WILLIAM. Yes -- she might think you don't have true love on your mind. SPIKE. Wouldn't want (and back up he goes). -- just one more. He comes down wearing it. Lots of hearts, saying, 'You're the most beautiful woman in the world.'. WILLIAM. Well, yes, that's perfect. Well done. 4. SPIKE. Thanks. Great. Wish me luck. WILLIAM. Good luck. Spike turns and walks upstairs. Revealing that on the back of the t-shirt, also printed in big letters, is written 'Fancy a fuck?'. EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY. WILLIAM ( ). And so it was just another hopeless Wednesday, as I set off through the market to work, little suspecting that this was the day which would change my life forever.

5 This is work, by the way, my little travel book A small unpretentious named 'The Travel Book Co.'. WILLIAM ( ).. which, well, sells travel books -- and, to be frank with you, doesn't always sell many of those. William enters. INT. THE BOOKSHOP - DAY. It is a small shop, slightly chaotic, bookshelves everywhere, with little secret bits round corners with even more books. Martin, William's sole employee, is waiting enthusiastically. He is keen, an uncrushable optimist. Perhaps without cause. A few seconds later, William stands gloomily behind the desk. WILLIAM. Classic. Absolutely classic. Profit from major sales push -- minus 347. pound. MARTIN. Shall I go get a cappuccino? Ease the pain. WILLIAM. Yes, better get me a half. All I. can afford. MARIN. I get you logic. Demi-capu coming up. 5. He salutes and bolts out of the door -- as he does, a woman walks in. We only just glimpse her. Cut to William working. He looks up casually. And sees something.

6 His reaction is hard to read. After a WILLIAM. Can I help you? It is Anna Scott, the biggest movie star in the world -- here --in his shop. The most divine, subtle, beautiful woman on earth. When she speaks she is very self-assured and self-contained. ANNA. No, thanks. I'll just look around. WILLIAM. Fine. She wanders over to a shelf as he watches her -- and picks out a quite smart coffee table book. WILLIAM. That book's really not good -- just in case, you know, browsing turned to buying. You'd be wasting your money. ANNA. Really? WILLIAM. Yes. This one though very good. He picks up a book on the counter. WILLIAM. I think the man who wrote it has actually been to Turkey, which helps. There's also a very amusing incident with a kebab. ANNA. Thanks. I'll think about it. William suddenly spies something odd on the small TV. monitor behind him. WILLIAM. If you could just give me a second. Her eyes follow him as he moves toward the back of the shop and approaches a man in slightly ill-fitting clothes.

7 6. WILLIAM. Excuse me. THIEF. Yes. WILLIAM. Bad news. THIEF. What? WILLIAM. We've got a security camera in this bit of the shop. THIEF. So? WILLIAM. So, I saw you put that book down your trousers. THIEF. What book? WILLIAM. The one down your trousers. THIEF. I haven't got a book down my trousers. WILLIAM. Right -- well, then we have something of an impasse. I tell you what --I'll call the police -- and, what can I say? If I'm wrong about the whole book-down-the-trousers scenario, I really apologize. THIEF. Okay -- what if I did have a book down my trousers? WILLIAM. Well, ideally, when I went back to the desk, you'd remove the Cadogan guide to Bali from your trousers, and either wipe it and put it back, or buy it. See you in a sec. He returns to his desk. In the monitor we just glimpse, as does William, the book coming out of the trousers and put back on the shelves. The thief drifts out toward the door. 7. Anna, who has observed all this, is looking at a blue book on the counter.

8 WILLIAM. Sorry about ANNA. No, that's fine. I was going to steal one myself but now I've changed my mind. Signed by the author, I see. WILLIAM. Yes, we couldn't stop him. If you can find an unsigned copy. It's worth an absolute fortune. She smiles. Suddenly the thief is there. THIEF. Excuse me. ANNA. Yes. THIEF. Can I have your autograph? ANNA. What's your name? THIEF. Rufus. She signs his scruffy piece of paper. He tries to read it. THIEF. What does it say? ANNA. Well, that's the signature -- and above, it says 'Dear Rufus -- you belong in jail.'. THIEF. Nice one. Would you like my phone number? ANNA. Tempting no, thank you. Thief leaves. ANNA. I think I will try this one. 8. She hands William a note and the book he said was rubbish. He talks as he handles the transaction. WILLIAM. Oh -- right -- on second thoughts maybe it wasn't that bad. Actually -- it's a sort of masterpiece really. None of those childish kebab stories you get in so many travel books these days.

9 And I'll throw in one of these for free. He drops in one of the signed books. WILLIAM. Very useful for fighting fires, wrapping fish, that sort of things. She looks at him with a slight smile. ANNA. Thanks. And leaves. She's out of his life forever. William is a little dazed. Seconds later Martin comes back in. MARTIN. Cappuccino as ordered. WILLIAM. Thanks. I don't think you'll believe who was just in here. MARTIN. Who? Someone famous? But William's innate natural English discretion takes over. WILLIAM. No. No-one -- no-one. They set about drinking their coffee. MARTIN. Would be exciting if someone famous did come into the shop though, wouldn't it? Do you know -- this is pretty incredible actually -- I once saw Ringo Starr. Or at least I. think it was Ringo. It might have been that broke from 'Fiddler On The Roof,' Toppy. WILLIAM. Topol. 9. MARTIN. That's right -- Topol. WILLIAM. But Ringo Starr doesn't look anything like Topol. MARTIN. No, he was quite a long way away.

10 WILLIAM. So it would have been neither of them? MARTIN. I suppose so. WILLIAM. Right. It's not a classic anecdotes, is it? MARTIN. Not classic, no. Martin shakes his head. William drinks his cappuccino. WILLIAM. Right -- want another one? MARTIN. Yes. No, wait -- let's go crazy -- I'll have an orange juice. EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY. William sets off. INT. COFFEE SHOP - DAY. William collects his juice in a coffee shop on Wesbourne Park Road. EXT. PORTOBELLO ROAD - DAY. William swings out of the little shop -- he turns the corner of Portobello Road and bumps straight into Anna. The orange juice, in its foam cup, flies. It soaks Anna. ANNA. Oh Jesus. WILLIAM. Here, let me help. 10. He grabs some paper napkins and starts to clean it off -- getting far too near her breasts in the panic of ANNA. What are you doing? He jumps back. WILLIAM. Nothing, Look, I live just over the street -- you could get cleaned up. ANNA. No thank you. I need to get my car back.